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{{Short description|American businessman}}
{{lead missing|date=June 2013}}
'''Gerald ("Jerry") Grinstein''' (born 1932) is an American businessman, the former [[Chief Executive Officer]] (CEO) of [[Delta Air Lines]]. He was CEO of [[Burlington Northern Railroad]] from 1985 to 1995, and joined Delta's board of directors in 1987. He became CEO of Delta in 2004, a time of financial crisis for the airline. After overseeing the firm's survival through [[bankruptcy]] and implementing a restructuring program, he retired as CEO in 2007.
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Grinstein4.jpg|thumb|150px|right|Gerald Grinstein {{deletable image-caption}}]] -->
'''Gerald Grinstein''' (born 1952) is the former [[CEO]] of [[Delta Air Lines]], Inc. of [[Atlanta]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]]. Grinstein came to the position in 2004, after CEO [[Leo F. Mullin]] stepped down amid a controversy over executive retirement and cash bonus plans that were deemed excessive. He is succeeded by Richard Anderson, a former Northwest Airlines executive, although Grinstein expected one of his two deputies for the top job. Grinstein and his wife Carolyn live in [[Seattle, Washington|Seattle]], [[Washington (U.S. state)|Washington]].


==Education==
Grinstein received a BA from [[Yale University]] in 1954 and a JD from [[Harvard Law School]] in 1957.
Grinstein received a BA from [[Yale University]] in 1954 and a JD from [[Harvard Law School]] in 1957.


==Business career==
⚫
From 1985 to 1995 Mr. Grinstein was also CEO of [[Burlington Northern Railroad]] (BN). In this position he helped form the corporate entity that resulted in BN's merger which formed the [[BNSF Railway]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.nndb.com/people/413/000126035/| title=Gerald Grinstein| work=NNDB| publisher=Soylent Communications| year=2008| accessdate=2008-02-28| }}</ref> While at the helm of BN, Grinstein adopted a new paint scheme for the railroad's executive office car train. Named for its creator, "Grinstein Green" was applied to the train's F-units along with a cream colored stripe down the middle. This paint scheme was later applied to the railroad's last order for locomotives before the merger, the EMD [[SD70MAC]]. Even today, this paint scheme is simply referred to as either "Grinstein" or "Executive" paint and many of the SD70MACs on the roster still sport this scheme.
===Burlington Northern Railroad===
⚫
From 1985 to 1995 Grinstein was CEO of [[Burlington Northern Railroad]] (BN).<ref>Welty, Gus. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160314234006/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-15745409.html ""Our rhetoric was terrific, but the performance wasn't there." (Burlington Northern CEO Gerald Grinstein) (The Competitors) (Cover Story) (Interview)."] Railway Age. Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corp. September 1, 1994.</ref> In this position he helped form the corporate entity that resulted in BN's merger which formed the [[BNSF Railway]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.nndb.com/people/413/000126035/| title=Gerald Grinstein| work=NNDB| publisher=Soylent Communications| year=2008| accessdate=2008-02-28}}</ref> While at the helm of BN, Grinstein adopted a new paint scheme for the railroad's executive office car train. Named for its creator, "Grinstein Green" was applied to the train's F-units along with a cream colored stripe down the middle. This paint scheme was later applied to the railroad's last order for locomotives before the merger, the EMD [[SD70MAC]]. Even today, this paint scheme is simply referred to as either "Grinstein" or "Executive" paint and many of the SD70MACs on the roster still sport this scheme.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=An Easter treat|magazine=[[Trains (magazine)|Trains]]|date=February 2023|pages=56–57|publisher=[[Kalmbach Media|Kalmbach]]}}</ref>


Grinstein received the [[Railroader of the Year]] award in 1996.<ref>Welty, Gus. [https://web.archive.org/web/20181115222511/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-17827115.html "Railroaders of the year: matchmakers Rob Krebs, Jerry Grinstein.(Rob Krebs, president and CEO of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., and former head of Santa Fe prior to the merger; Jerry Grinstein, retired chairman of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp.)(Cover Story)."] Railway Age. Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corp. January 1, 1996.</ref>
Previously, Grinstein served as CEO of [[Western Airlines]]. When Western and Delta merged in 1987, he was appointed to Delta's Board of Directors and has remained on the board since then. He took over as CEO at a time when Delta was in a deep financial crisis. Grinstein embarked on a number of aggressive cost-cutting measures, including a major out-of-court restructuring of the company's long term debt and outsourcing of some heavy aircraft maintenance and ramp handling operations. He successfully negotiated with [[Air Line Pilots Association, International|ALPA]], the Delta pilots' union, for deep concessions in order to help the company stave off bankruptcy.


===Delta Air Lines===
⚫
Grinstein also set about regaining the trust and confidence of Delta's rank and file employees, most of whom still harbored a great deal of resentment over the previous management's actions. He promised open, honest communications and granted himself an annual salary of $450,000 with no bonuses or stock options of any kind, well below the multimillion dollar compensation packages accepted by Mullin and his top executives at a time when Delta was losing billions of dollars. Mr. Grinstein's mix of almost grand-fatherly demeanor and his down-to-earth communication approach enabled him to be singularly able to restore the family atmosphere at Delta despite tremendous external pressures. Grinstein was successful in attracting several highly talented executives to Delta who played critical roles in the company's survival despite the airline's precarious financial position. And Mr. Grinstein actively sought the input of employees by maintaining consistent communication with the Delta Board Council, frontline employees, and the councils and forums assembled to represent them.
When [[Western Airlines]] and Delta Air Lines, Inc. of [[Atlanta]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] merged in 1987, Grinstein, CEO of Western since 1985, was appointed to Delta's Board of Directors and has remained on the board since then. He took over as CEO in 2004, when Delta was in a deep financial crisis, after CEO [[Leo F. Mullin]] stepped down amid a controversy over executive retirement and cash bonus plans that were deemed excessive.<ref>Coolidge, Alexander. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160314103842/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-110578605.html "DELTA IN TRANSITION\ MULLIN ERA COMES TO A SURPRISE CLOSE.(Business)."] The Cincinnati Post (Cincinnati, OH). Dialog LLC. November 25, 2003.</ref> Grinstein embarked on a number of cost-cutting measures, including a major out-of-court restructuring of the company's long term debt and outsourcing of some heavy aircraft maintenance and ramp handling operations.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160503112206/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-130786178.html "Delta Air Lines needs to cut costs, says CEO. (Gerald Grinstein says)(Brief Article)."] Airline Industry Information. Normans Media Ltd. March 24, 2005.</ref> In negotiations with [[Air Line Pilots Association, International|ALPA]], the Delta pilots' union, he secured deep concessions in order to help the company stave off bankruptcy.


⚫
Grinstein also set about regaining the trust and confidence of Delta's employees. He granted himself an annual salary of $450,000 with no bonuses or stock options, well below the multimillion-dollar compensation packages accepted by Mullin and his top executives at a time when Delta was losing billions of dollars. Grinstein appointed new executives to Delta who assisted in the company's survival despite the airline's precarious financial position. He sought to maintain communication with the Delta Board Council and with representatives of frontline employees.
⚫
Although these initiatives were largely successful, upward pressure on fuel prices and fierce competition from low cost carriers continued to keep Delta perilously close to bankruptcy. [[Hurricane Katrina]] resulted in a dramatic spike in jet fuel prices in [[Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport|Atlanta]], which houses Delta's largest hub operation. Delta, which had previously sold its fuel [[hedge (finance)|hedges]] in a move to raise cash, was forced into an untenable cash position. On September 14, 2005, Delta and its subsidiaries filed a petition for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. At the time of the bankruptcy filing, Delta's total debt was approximately $23.8 billion.


====Bankruptcy and restructuring====
⚫
During Delta's bankruptcy, Grinstein and his management team accelerated the restructuring process that they had started in 2004. Delta aggressively shed non-performing assets, slashed the mainline fleet from nine models to five, and shed thousands of jobs. By 2007, Delta's mainline operation employed approximately 47,000, down from a high of 78,000 in 2001. Grinstein successfully negotiated a second concessionary agreement from ALPA, imposed a second round of paycuts on nonunion employees, and froze the nonunion employee pension plan. He reduced his own pay by 25%, to approximately $325,000 per year.
⚫
Although these initiatives were largely successful, upward pressure on fuel prices and fierce competition from low-cost carriers continued to keep Delta perilously close to bankruptcy. [[Hurricane Katrina]] resulted in a dramatic spike in jet fuel prices in [[Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport|Atlanta]], which houses Delta's largest hub operation. Delta, which had previously sold its fuel [[hedge (finance)|hedges]] in a move to raise cash, was forced into an untenable cash position. On September 14, 2005, Delta and its subsidiaries filed a petition for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. At the time of the bankruptcy filing, Delta's total debt was approximately $23.8 billion.


⚫
During Delta's bankruptcy, Grinstein and his management team accelerated the restructuring process that they had started in 2004. Delta shed non-performing assets, slashed the mainline fleet from nine models to five, and shed thousands of jobs. By 2007, Delta's mainline operation employed approximately 47,000, down from a high of 78,000 in 2001. Grinstein negotiated a second concessionary agreement from ALPA, imposed a second round of paycuts on nonunion employees, and froze the nonunion employee pension plan. He reduced his own pay by 25%, to approximately $325,000 per year.
⚫
Grinstein also oversaw a massive restructuring of Delta's network footprint, shuttering the airline's [[Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport|Dallas-Fort Worth]] hub and slashing domestic flight schedules across the remaining hubs in an effort to redeploy aircraft and personnel to more profitable international markets. Delta entered more than 50 new international markets between 2005 and 2007 and since its merger with Northwest Airlines in 2008 has become the world's largest carrier.


⚫
Grinstein also oversaw a major restructuring of Delta's network footprint, closing the airline's [[Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport|Dallas–Fort Worth]] hub and cutting domestic flight schedules across the remaining hubs in an effort to redeploy aircraft and personnel to more profitable international markets. Delta entered more than 50 new international markets between 2005 and 2007 and since its merger with [[Northwest Airlines]] in 2008 has become the world's largest carrier.
⚫
In November 2006, [[US Airways]] launched an unsolicited hostile takeover bid for Delta which Grinstein and his executive team led by [[Jim Whitehurst]] and Edward Bastian successfully fended off by supporting the employee-led Keep Delta My Delta campaign. Grinstein retired in the Summer of 2007.


⚫
In November 2006, [[US Airways]] launched an unsolicited [[Takeover#Hostile|hostile takeover bid]] for Delta, which Grinstein and his executive team led by [[Jim Whitehurst]] and Edward Bastian defeated by supporting the employee-led "Keep Delta My Delta" campaign.<ref>MICHELE NORRIS. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160310182801/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-133965113.html "Congress Looks at Possible Delta-US Air Merger."] NPR All Things Considered. National Public Radio. January 24, 2007.</ref>
Unlike his predecessor Mullin who collected in excess of $13 million despite Delta's profuse bleeding upon his forced exit from Delta in 2003, Grinstein instead directed the company to use his allotted bankruptcy emergence stock grants to establish a scholarship fund for Delta employees and their children and a hardship fund for Delta families.

====Retirement====
Grinstein retired in the summer of 2007,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160315050006/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-162902612.html "Sign of the times"]. The Salt Lake Tribune (Salt Lake City, UT). McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. May 2, 2007.</ref> allocating his bankruptcy emergence stock grants to establish a scholarship fund for Delta employees and their children and a hardship fund for Delta families. He was succeeded by [[Richard H. Anderson (businessman)|Richard Anderson]], a former Northwest Airlines executive. Grinstein and his wife Carolyn live in [[Medina, Washington|Medina]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]].<ref>[https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/other-sports/william-ruckelshaus-gerald-grinstein-celebrate-80th-birthdays-with-salmon-fishing-trip/ William Ruckelshaus, Gerald Grinstein celebrate 80th birthdays with salmon-fishing trip | The Seattle Times] Retrieved 2018-12-12.</ref>


== References ==
== References ==
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== External links ==
== External links ==
*[http://www.delta.com/about_delta/corporate_information/corporate_biographies/grinstein/index.jsp Gerald Grinstein Corporate Biography]
*[http://www.delta.com/about_delta/corporate_information/corporate_biographies/grinstein/index.jsp Gerald Grinstein Corporate Biography]
*[http://www.townhall.com/columnists/column.aspx?UrlTitle=heres_to_the_richest_man_in_town&ns=MattTowery&dt=03/22/2007&page=2 Here's To The Richest Man In Town] by [[Matt Towery]]


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{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
| NAME = Grinstein, Gerald
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = American businessman
| DATE OF BIRTH =
| PLACE OF BIRTH =
| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grinstein, Gerald}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grinstein, Gerald}}
[[Category:People from Seattle, Washington]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from Seattle]]
[[Category:American railroad executives of the 20th century]]
[[Category:20th-century American railroad executives]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:1932 births]]
[[Category:Delta Air Lines people]]
[[Category:Delta Air Lines people]]
[[Category:American airline chief executives]]
[[Category:American airline chief executives]]
[[Category:Harvard Law School alumni]]
[[Category:Harvard Law School alumni]]
[[Category:Yale University alumni]]
[[Category:Yale University alumni]]
[[Category:People from Medina, Washington]]

Latest revision as of 09:05, 4 December 2023

Gerald ("Jerry") Grinstein (born 1932) is an American businessman, the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Delta Air Lines. He was CEO of Burlington Northern Railroad from 1985 to 1995, and joined Delta's board of directors in 1987. He became CEO of Delta in 2004, a time of financial crisis for the airline. After overseeing the firm's survival through bankruptcy and implementing a restructuring program, he retired as CEO in 2007.

Education[edit]

Grinstein received a BA from Yale University in 1954 and a JD from Harvard Law School in 1957.

Business career[edit]

Burlington Northern Railroad[edit]

From 1985 to 1995 Grinstein was CEO of Burlington Northern Railroad (BN).[1] In this position he helped form the corporate entity that resulted in BN's merger which formed the BNSF Railway.[2] While at the helm of BN, Grinstein adopted a new paint scheme for the railroad's executive office car train. Named for its creator, "Grinstein Green" was applied to the train's F-units along with a cream colored stripe down the middle. This paint scheme was later applied to the railroad's last order for locomotives before the merger, the EMD SD70MAC. Even today, this paint scheme is simply referred to as either "Grinstein" or "Executive" paint and many of the SD70MACs on the roster still sport this scheme.[3]

Grinstein received the Railroader of the Year award in 1996.[4]

Delta Air Lines[edit]

When Western Airlines and Delta Air Lines, Inc. of Atlanta, Georgia merged in 1987, Grinstein, CEO of Western since 1985, was appointed to Delta's Board of Directors and has remained on the board since then. He took over as CEO in 2004, when Delta was in a deep financial crisis, after CEO Leo F. Mullin stepped down amid a controversy over executive retirement and cash bonus plans that were deemed excessive.[5] Grinstein embarked on a number of cost-cutting measures, including a major out-of-court restructuring of the company's long term debt and outsourcing of some heavy aircraft maintenance and ramp handling operations.[6] In negotiations with ALPA, the Delta pilots' union, he secured deep concessions in order to help the company stave off bankruptcy.

Grinstein also set about regaining the trust and confidence of Delta's employees. He granted himself an annual salary of $450,000 with no bonuses or stock options, well below the multimillion-dollar compensation packages accepted by Mullin and his top executives at a time when Delta was losing billions of dollars. Grinstein appointed new executives to Delta who assisted in the company's survival despite the airline's precarious financial position. He sought to maintain communication with the Delta Board Council and with representatives of frontline employees.

Bankruptcy and restructuring[edit]

Although these initiatives were largely successful, upward pressure on fuel prices and fierce competition from low-cost carriers continued to keep Delta perilously close to bankruptcy. Hurricane Katrina resulted in a dramatic spike in jet fuel prices in Atlanta, which houses Delta's largest hub operation. Delta, which had previously sold its fuel hedges in a move to raise cash, was forced into an untenable cash position. On September 14, 2005, Delta and its subsidiaries filed a petition for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. At the time of the bankruptcy filing, Delta's total debt was approximately $23.8 billion.

During Delta's bankruptcy, Grinstein and his management team accelerated the restructuring process that they had started in 2004. Delta shed non-performing assets, slashed the mainline fleet from nine models to five, and shed thousands of jobs. By 2007, Delta's mainline operation employed approximately 47,000, down from a high of 78,000 in 2001. Grinstein negotiated a second concessionary agreement from ALPA, imposed a second round of paycuts on nonunion employees, and froze the nonunion employee pension plan. He reduced his own pay by 25%, to approximately $325,000 per year.

Grinstein also oversaw a major restructuring of Delta's network footprint, closing the airline's Dallas–Fort Worth hub and cutting domestic flight schedules across the remaining hubs in an effort to redeploy aircraft and personnel to more profitable international markets. Delta entered more than 50 new international markets between 2005 and 2007 and since its merger with Northwest Airlines in 2008 has become the world's largest carrier.

In November 2006, US Airways launched an unsolicited hostile takeover bid for Delta, which Grinstein and his executive team led by Jim Whitehurst and Edward Bastian defeated by supporting the employee-led "Keep Delta My Delta" campaign.[7]

Retirement[edit]

Grinstein retired in the summer of 2007,[8] allocating his bankruptcy emergence stock grants to establish a scholarship fund for Delta employees and their children and a hardship fund for Delta families. He was succeeded by Richard Anderson, a former Northwest Airlines executive. Grinstein and his wife Carolyn live in Medina, Washington.[9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Welty, Gus. ""Our rhetoric was terrific, but the performance wasn't there." (Burlington Northern CEO Gerald Grinstein) (The Competitors) (Cover Story) (Interview)." Railway Age. Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corp. September 1, 1994.
  2. ^ "Gerald Grinstein". NNDB. Soylent Communications. 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
  3. ^ "An Easter treat". Trains. Kalmbach. February 2023. pp. 56–57.
  4. ^ Welty, Gus. "Railroaders of the year: matchmakers Rob Krebs, Jerry Grinstein.(Rob Krebs, president and CEO of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., and former head of Santa Fe prior to the merger; Jerry Grinstein, retired chairman of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp.)(Cover Story)." Railway Age. Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corp. January 1, 1996.
  5. ^ Coolidge, Alexander. "DELTA IN TRANSITION\ MULLIN ERA COMES TO A SURPRISE CLOSE.(Business)." The Cincinnati Post (Cincinnati, OH). Dialog LLC. November 25, 2003.
  6. ^ "Delta Air Lines needs to cut costs, says CEO. (Gerald Grinstein says)(Brief Article)." Airline Industry Information. Normans Media Ltd. March 24, 2005.
  7. ^ MICHELE NORRIS. "Congress Looks at Possible Delta-US Air Merger." NPR All Things Considered. National Public Radio. January 24, 2007.
  8. ^ "Sign of the times". The Salt Lake Tribune (Salt Lake City, UT). McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. May 2, 2007.
  9. ^ William Ruckelshaus, Gerald Grinstein celebrate 80th birthdays with salmon-fishing trip | The Seattle Times Retrieved 2018-12-12.

External links[edit]

Preceded by CEO of Burlington Northern Railroad
1985 – 1995 		Succeeded by
nobody
Preceded by Railroader of the Year
1996
shared with Robert D. Krebs (ATSF) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief Executive Officer of Delta Air Lines
2004–2007 		Succeeded by
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gerald_Grinstein&oldid=1188266205"